The Detroit Pistons haven’t made the big offseason splash that some were hoping for, but that doesn’t mean it’s not coming.
There are still at least three big names potentially on the trade market in Damian Lillard, James Harden and Pascal Siakam, and the Pistons could end up getting involved in one of these deals as a third or fourth team.
Of course, they could try to land one of the stars themselves, though of the three, only Siakam really makes sense.
But he makes a whole lot of sense, as a 29-year-old power forward who is one of the best in the league at his position. Detroit still doesn’t have a surefire starting caliber power forward on the roster (depending on how you view Isaiah Stewart) and on paper, Siakam would be the perfect fit.
But if the Pistons are going to make a move for him, they are going to have competition.
Could the Pistons outbid the Pacers for Pascal Siakam?
According to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports, the Indiana Pacers are one of the teams that is inquiring about Siakam and may be the frontrunners to land him if the Raptors do decide to trade their All-Star.
The Pacers are probably a year or two ahead of the Pistons in terms of their rebuild (mostly thanks to the miss on Haliburton) and Siakam would fit perfectly with the team they currently have assembled. Of course, they just drafted Jarace Walker, which may have cooled their interest some, but this does seem like a Pacers team that is on the cusp and could be a contender with the right addition.
There are some issues when it comes to trading for Siakam, as he has indicated that he wants to re-sign with Toronto so that he can maximize his earnings. But as we’ve seen far too often (most recently with Lillard), players can quickly change their minds and demand out even after signing a super-max extension.
This is probably Siakam’s last chance at a mega deal, so he’s smart to want to squeeze out every penny he can.
But let’s say for a moment that the Raptors did want to move him, and that Siakam was open to it, would the Detroit Pistons even have the assets to do it?
Could the Pistons outbid the Pacers for Pascal Siakam?
It should be noted that if Siakam hits the market there will be a lot of interest, as All-NBA players in their prime who have already won titles don’t become available very often.
If the Pistons were even interested (not sure they are) they’d likely be bidding against several other teams, not just the Pacers, and Siakam will likely have some amount of say where he ends up.
Even if it were just the Pacers, I’m not sure the Pistons would be able to offer up a compelling trade package better than the one Indiana can put on the table.
Both teams have some big contracts for useful shooters in Bojan Bogdanovic and Buddy Hield to get the money matching started. You can throw in guys like Marvin Bagley III and/or Killian Hayes (I’m sure Toronto is excited about this already!) for the Pistons and the Pacers also have young players like Andrew Nembhard, Jalen Smith or even Obi Toppin (can’t be traded right away) they could add to the package.
Neither team has a great offer in terms of players, so it would come down to draft picks, which is where the Pistons come up way short. The Pacers own all of their picks for the foreseeable future, while Detroit is still being stymied by the one they owe the Knicks, which is top-18 protected next season and can’t be traded until draft day. Detroit could go deeper into the future, but the Raptors are not likely to be as interested in draft prospects that are currently in middle school.
So without adding a part of their young core, there’s not a clear path for the Pistons to trade for Siakam, and that’s if the Pacers are the only other team involved, which they won’t be. Even if Detroit could get him, would they really want to? Yes and no.
Pascal Siakam on the Detroit Pistons
On paper, you won’t find too many players that are a better fit for the Detroit Pistons than Pascal Siakam, who is one of the best power forwards in the game.
Getting him would allow the Pistons to move on from Bogdanovic, and put Ausar Thompson directly into the starting five, giving them a group that looks like this:
- Cade Cunningham
- Jaden Ivey
- Ausar Thompson
- Pascal Siakam
- Jalen Duren
Sign me up for that. That is a long, athletic starting five that can defend and make plays, though the shooting may leave something to be desired.
The downside is really only financial, as Siakam is going to be making bank on his next contract, and if the Pistons were to trade for him now, there is no guarantee it would even be with them, as he is an unrestricted free agent at the end of next season and has made it very clear that he intends to get every dime that is coming to him.
In the end, Siakam is likely a pipe dream for Detroit for several reasons, as they would have too much competition on the trade market and may not have the right assets even if they didn’t.